Time for the NL to adopt the DH

Jim Rogash/Getty ImagesIf the DH were abolished, a player like David Ortiz might have to retire.

On Sunday, MLB finished up the interleague portion of the schedule for 2012, and it was the end of interleague play as we know it. In 2013, the Houston Astros will move to the American League, which will give each league 15 teams and also give us interleague play all season long.

This development is positive in that it will give us six divisions with five teams apiece, but it poses its own set of problems. Chief among them is the designated hitter rule. With so many interleague games, having two sets of rules complicates matters for a game struggling to remain simple and fan-friendly.

Let’s be clear: It is time for baseball to get both of its leagues synchronized with the same rule, whether that’s with or without the designated hitter.

Since abolishing the DH would never get approved by the MLB players' association, the game has no choice but to embrace the DH -- from the major leagues down through all levels of the minor leagues.

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Jim Bowden

Bowden, who served as the senior vice president and GM for the Cincinnati Reds and the Washington Nationals, is an analyst for ESPN.com.
In 1992, Bowden became the youngest GM in MLB history when the Reds hired him at age 31. The Reds finished in first place twice during his 10 years as GM, and he was named MLB Executive of the Year by Baseball America in 1999.
After working for ESPN in 2004, Bowden became the first GM of the Washington Nationals when the franchise relocated from Montreal to Washington, D.C., in 2005, working in that role until the 2009 season. Bowden co-hosts the "Inside Pitch" radio show on Sirius XM satellite radio. Follow on Twitter: @JimBowden_ESPN.